So, I spent some time looking into this ‘Jennifer Schmitt’ approach I kept hearing about. Not really sure what the big deal was, but folks mentioned it, so I thought, alright, let’s see.
My First Attempt
I decided to try it out on my messy workshop project. You know, the one that’s been sitting there forever. First thing, I cleared the whole bench. Everything off. Tools, parts, half-finished bits, the whole lot went onto the floor. Felt kinda good, like a fresh start.
Then I tried to follow the steps I vaguely remembered someone mentioning. Something about grouping items by… function? Or maybe it was frequency of use? Honestly, the explanation I got was a bit fuzzy.
- I started putting all the cutting tools together. Saws, knives, shears. Okay, simple enough.
- Then the measuring stuff. Rulers, tapes, calipers. Got it.
- Then… well, then it got tricky. Where do the fasteners go? Are screws and bolts one group? What about glues and tapes?
I spent a good hour just moving piles around. Put the screws with the small metal parts, then thought, no, they’re for joining things, maybe they go with clamps? Moved them again. It felt less like organizing and more like just shifting clutter.
Hitting a Wall
This whole process started reminding me of trying to learn that fancy new software everyone was raving about last year. Looked great in the demo, everyone said it was intuitive. But when I actually sat down to use it? Clicked around for ages, couldn’t figure out how to do the simplest things my old program did easily. Total waste of an afternoon.
Same feeling here. This ‘Jennifer Schmitt’ way, maybe it works if you have a very specific type of setup, or maybe the person explaining it to me left out the important bits. For my chaotic mix of wood, metal, and electronic parts, it just wasn’t clicking.
Making It Work (Sort Of)
So, after getting frustrated, I kind of gave up on the strict ‘method’. I took the basic idea – grouping similar things – but did it my own way. My logic.
Stuff I use all the time? Right at the front, easy to grab. Doesn’t matter if it’s a screwdriver or a specific type of wire. Stuff I use rarely? Boxed up and put on the high shelf. Sharp things together, messy things together. Simple.
Basically, I ended up with my own system, maybe inspired a tiny bit by the initial idea, but mostly just common sense based on how I work. Took me the rest of the day, not just the hour I hoped for.
So yeah, that was my adventure with the Jennifer Schmitt thing. Didn’t quite follow the script, had to wrestle with it, and ended up doing my own version. It’s cleaner now, I guess. But was it the ‘method’? Nah. Just me, finally tackling the mess.
